April 10, 2014 Comments are off Montana Stockgrowers Association
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Montana Ranching FAQ | Feeding Cows For Cold Weather

PBS Ag Live Answering Montana Ranching QuestionsWhat questions do you have about ranching in Montana? We’re teaming up with Montana PBS’ Ag Live program to bring you the answers. The Ag Live program from Montana PBS teams up with experts from Montana State University Extension to discuss everything from pesticide use and agricultural techniques involved in ranching and the cattle business. We ask that you submit questions to [email protected]. These questions will be answered by PBS and MSU Extension, then published in our monthly Digital Newsletter.

Q: During the recent cold spell, my cows were eating me out of house and home! Is there a rule of thumb about how much extra feed cows should get during cold weather?

A: The range of temperatures where cattle (or other mammals) don’t have to expend any energy to maintain body temperature is called the thermoneutral zone. When it gets warmer than the upper critical temperature, cattle have to use energy to cool down. When it gets colder than the lower critical temperature, cattle have to use energy to warm up. You might be wondering, “what is the lower critical temperature?” Like any good animal science question, the answer is, “it depends!” In this case, it depends on hair coat and weather conditions (see table).

Estimated lower critical temperatures for beef cattle. From Beef Production and Management Decisions (Field, 2007)

Coat Description Critical Temperature
Summer coat or wet 59° F
Fall coat 45° F
Winter coat 32° F
Heavy winter coat 18° F

With a summer hair coat, or a wet (to the skin) hair coat at any temperature, the lower critical temperature is quite warm at 59° F. On the other hand, the lower critical temperature for a cow with a heavy winter coat is 18° F. When a cow is experiencing cold stress, the major effect on nutrient requirements is an increased need for energy, which generally indicates the total amount of feed needs to be increased. A simple rule of thumb (more detailed information is available) is to increase the amount of feed 1% for every degree of coldness below the appropriate lower critical temperature.

For example, let’s say you have a 1200-pound cow with a winter hair coat. It’s currently 20° F with a 15 mph wind and you normally feed 24 pounds of hay per day. The effective temperature with the windchill is 6° F, and the appropriate lower critical temperature is 32° F. Subtracting 6 from 32 yields 26, so the amount of hay needs to be increased by 26%. This would be just over 6 pounds of additional hay for a total of about 30 pounds.

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April 3, 2014 Comments are off Montana Stockgrowers Association
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Beef Meals in 30 Minutes for Millennial Lifestyle | Beef Briefs

beef meals beef briefs

Did you know…

…that providing 30-minute nutritious meal solutions is just one of the things that your checkoff is doing to show millennials how beef can fit into their lifestyle? The checkoff also motivates foodservice chefs and other professionals to sell more beef by providing them with a steady flow of knowledge, fact-based information and inspiration to keep their menus alive and active with beef. This includes new opportunities for preparing beef, through preparation methods, new flavor combinations and profiles and new equipment and appliances.

Learn more at www.MyBeefCheckoff.com.
Beef Briefs is your monthly snapshot of beef checkoff news affecting the beef and dairy industries.
Provided by the great folks at the Montana Beef Council.

 

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March 31, 2014 Comments are off Montana Stockgrowers Association
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Montana nutrition conference, livestock forum set for April 22, 23 at Bozeman

Montana Stockgrowers’ Ryan Goodman will be speaking on Tuesday night at the Montana Nutrition Conference and Livestock forum in Bozeman. MSGA hopes everyone will take the opportunity to attend the meeting and to hear from a great line up of speakers over the two days.

montana state extension logoBOZEMAN — The future of ranching will be the focus of this year’s Montana Nutrition Conference and Livestock Forum in Bozeman.

The conference will begin the afternoon of Tuesday, April 22, and run through the morning of Wednesday, April 23, at the GranTree Inn, 1325 N. 7th Avenue.

Speakers will cover a wide variety of topics, including water quality and mineral supplementation, the importance of mycotoxins in Montana, treating low quality forages to improve feeding quality, applying genomic selection, estate planning, the October 2013 blizzard in South Dakota, and the future of feed-grade antibiotics in livestock.

The Tuesday evening program will feature Carrie Mess, a Wisconsin dairy farmer and blogger, and Ryan Goodman, manager of communications at the Montana Stockgrowers Association, speaking on “Social Media: Understanding the Power of Reaching Our Customers.” Two scholarships sponsored by the Montana Feed Association will also be awarded.

The conference is organized by Montana State University Extension Beef Cattle Specialist Rachel Endecott in conjunction with the Montana Feed Association.

Cost to attend both days of the conference is $115. Attendees can register online with a credit card at https://www.montana.edu/nutrition/. A conference brochure is available at http://animalrange.montana.edu/conferences.htm

The schedule and speakers are:

Tuesday, April 22

  • 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. — Registration
  • 12:30 p.m. — Welcome
  • 1 to 2 p.m. — Water Quality and Mineral Supplementation. Mark Petersen, USDA-ARS Fort Keogh
  • 2 to 3 p.m. — Mycotoxins: Importance in Montana –Barry Jacobsen, MSU
  • 3 p.m. — Break
  • 3:15 to 4:15 p.m. – Treating Low Quality Forages to Improve Feeding Quality. Tim Bodine, Performix Nutrition
  • 4:15 to 5:15 p.m. — Application of Genomic Selection: New Frontiers in Animal Breeding. Jennifer Thomson, MSU
  • 5:30 p.m. — Social
  • 6:30 p.m. — Dinner and program
  • Scholarship presentations
  • Evening speakers: Social Media – Understanding the power of reaching our customers. Carrie Mess, Wisconsin dairy farmer, and Ryan Goodman, manager of communications, Montana Stockgrowers Association

Wednesday, April 23

  • 7 to 8 a.m. — Breakfast, grad student poster judging
  • 8 to 9:30 a.m. — Think You Know Who Gets Your Property When You Die? Think Again…Even If You Have a Will! Marsha Goetting, MSU
  • 9:30 a.m. — Break
  • 9:45 to 10:45 a.m. — October 2013 Blizzard in South Dakota: What Are the Ramifications? Ken Olson, South Dakota State University
  • 10:45 to 11:45 a.m. — Using Feed-Grade Antibiotics in Livestock: What Changes Should We Prepare For? Russ Daly, SDSU
  • 11:45 a.m. to noon – Presentation of graduate student poster awards. Pat Hatfield, MSU
  • Noon — Conference wrap-up
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29 lean cuts of beef - montana beef council
February 11, 2014 Comments are off Montana Stockgrowers Association
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Beef Up, While Slimming Down

29 lean cuts of beef - montana beef councilBy Lisa Murray RD, CDE, LN, Director of Nutrition Montana Beef Council

You’re off to a great start. You’ve made your New Year’s resolution to be healthy, slim down and have a plan on how to achieve your goals. I have great news for you: Beef can be part of your resolution to eat healthier. You can feel good about loving beef because the protein in beef is a powerful nutrient that helps strengthen and sustain your body. Because protein promotes satiety (feeling full), eating a protein rich meal or snack makes you feel full longer, and satisfies cravings faster.

If fact, choosing lean beef as a high quality protein is actually a calorie-saver! That’s right – when you eat beef you are making a smart choice. There are more than 29 leans cuts of beef available, most come from the round or loin, such as sirloin, tenderloin, round roast or 95% lean ground beef.

A 4 ounce cooked portion of lean beef provides 150 calories and 25 grams of protein. Compared to other protein sources, to get the same amount of protein you would have to eat three ½ cup servings of black beans (375 calories) or 7 Tablespoons of peanut butter (670 calories). Beef also provides 10 essential nutrients; zinc, iron, protein, selenium, B6 & B12, phosphorus, niacin, choline and riboflavin.

So you want to know how to include beef daily as part of a healthy eating plan? The BOLD study (Beef in an Optimal Lean Diet) showed that eating lean beef daily as part of a heart healthy diet, significantly lowered cholesterol levels. The website BeefNutrition.org provides information on the BOLD study as well as one week of meals plans and recipes. Keeping your resolution to eat more healthy has never been so delicious.

 

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November 9, 2010 Comments are off Montana Stockgrowers Association
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Rangeland Livestock Production: Surviving Difficult Economic Times meeting to be held Nov. 19 in Great Falls

The International Mountain Section (IMS) of the Society for Range Management (SRM) is hosting a day-long meeting focused on Rangeland Livestock Production: Surviving Difficult Economic Times on November 19th, 2010 at the Great Falls Hampton Inn. The International Mountain Section of SRM is one geographic section that encompasses western Montana and Alberta. IMS is hosting this session as part of their Fall Meeting, which rotates back and forth between western Montana and Alberta.

The day-long program will focus on rangeland management strategies that have aided ranchers in surviving the fluctuating economy. The program will include university researchers, Extension personnel, and Montana ranchers. Extension personnel and university researchers will provide insight into the economic benefits of managing pastures in fair to good range condition versus excellent condition, the sociological effects of the economy on rural communities, and how consumer satisfaction and perception is tied to ranching and meat production. Ranchers on the program will highlight their management systems and share with the group the approaches they use that have helped them to stay in business, including grass-fed beef and lamb, grazing rotations, and other sustainable grazing management practices. The program will conclude with a banquet and IMS Section awards that evening.

Please consider attending this event – the IMS would love to have your participation! Registration, the agenda, and local information can be found at: http://ims.rangelands.org/2010%20Fall%20Meeting%20agenda.shtml. If you have questions, please feel free to contact Tracy Mosley, MSU Park County Extension Agriculture Agent at (406) 222-4156.